Coming Home
by Kara-Meir
Summary: How Dredd and Anderson came to be: starting as partners, teammates, and so much more. All the tooth-rotting fluff (as much as Dredd is able to give) one could desire. Dredd's inner thoughts on what Cassandra Anderson means to him and how it changes his view of the world they live in.


She made everything okay.

He wasn't a solitary man by nature, needing human contact just as much as any other person, the choice to be a one man team his and his alone. He couldn't afford the distractions others would bring him, out on the streets, in the Hall of Justice, not if he wanted to have any hope of performing his duties as best he could. Didn't mean he had to like it though. Another reason he worked alone was he couldn't afford to have a partner that slowed him down or got in the way. The rare moments the Chief Judge tried to give him a partner they lasted less than a week. He preferred it that way as well, as most of them were in awe or in fear of his infamous reputation.

Until Anderson.

Hard headed Rookie with something to prove. Not so different from all the others. Except, she was. It wasn't apparent at first, not until halfway through the Peach Trees bust. Up until that point she'd been hesitant, indescisive. After Ma-Ma's goons had tried to wipe them out for the fourth or fifth time something had seemed to click into place. There was that spark in her eye that marked every Judge with the fire and ice in their veins to survive and thrive on the desolate streets of the Mega City. The same spark that filled his eyes. A quality he couldn't help but admire. A rare thing in these fucked up times.

After their survival word had spread like fire through the criminals of the seedy underbelly that plagued their district(s) that the two of them were a force to be reckoned with. The Chief Judge and her advisors would seem to agree. Which is why the verdict was passed down that Dredd and Anderson would partner up and bring some semblance of order to the chaos of the streets. A verdict Dredd had been surprised to find he didn't mind at all.

After that day, they were inseperable. They were one of the best pairs of Street Judges out there, no small thanks due to Anderson's psychic abilities. Dredd of course had his years of experience out on patrol to rely upon, but he couldn't help but be a little grateful that Anderson came along when she did. Her gift had come in handy a time or two if he was being completely honest with himself.

The day he knew it was all over was one of their worst shifts in months. Gang bangers had decided to start an all-out war with each other other over who had control of the drug distribution for portions of the city. They had been in the thick of it all, heavy fighting in one of the warehouse districts had them pinned down on all sides. Backup was on its way, but a single minute can mean the difference between life or death for a Judge out on the streets. Anderson had been beyond exhausted, the strain of keeping up her Psi abilities and carrying out justice were taking their toll. It didn't help at all that Dredd had been taken out of action by a random perp. Some dealer had gotten hold of restricted armor-piercing rounds and got a lucky shot off that had punctured one of his lungs and cracked a couple ribs for good measure. That meant he was only half as effective as usual. That is until Anderson had threatened to give him a concussion (again) if he didn't lay the fuck down and try not to bleed to death.

He could feel his vision fading as he tried not to fall unconscious. His heartbeat was pounding away in an attempt to keep him alive. The last thing he remmebered seeing was Anderson gunning down the last of the perps and turning only to see him slumped against the wall passed out. He woke up in the med wing a day later, Anderson asleep in a chair by his side. If it had been his choice he would have had the Med staff patch him up and send him home to recover. Most likely Anderson knew he would attempt it and vetoed the medics from trying. Not even Dredd would want to face an angry Anderson who had found out her orders about him had been disobeyed.

Anderson wakes up a few minutes later and jumps up in surprise to see him awake. She starts yelling at him, asking how he could be so stupid and get shot for the umpteenth time. Dredd can tell she's working herself up into a righteous fury and he does the only thing he can think of that will get her to be quiet.

He kisses her.

It had been building for some time, the heated glances whenever they took down a perp, the accidental touches when they got off duty, the fact that they had been through the fires of hell together and come out alive on the other side, mostly unscathed. Dredd wasn't a man to show much emotion, but he put as much of it as he could into that kiss. After a long moment, Anderson kissed back. They broke apart and she rested her forehead against his.

"Don't you ever do that to me again."

Smirking, Dredd replied "I make no promises."

Feeling the meds coursing through him Dredd started drifting off slowly, fighting the urge to sleep. Anderson saw right through his attempts and shut him down.

"Sleep. I'll be right here."

Dredd grabbed her arm and tugged her onto the hospital bed, scooting over to make room for her at his side. The jostling movement jarred his healing ribs and he hissed in pain, but it faded after a little bit. He drew her in closer and she lay her head on his shoulder. Soon after they were both asleep. A nurse coming in to check on the patient an hour later stopped in her tracks. The great Judge Dredd and his partner both asleep on the hospital bed. She gently smiled and shut the door to continue on her round of the wards.

Weeks later he had been released from the med ward and back onto the active duty roster with stern instructions not to overextend himself. After a particularly grueling shift, they both trudged back to his apartment to wolf down whatever food was in the fridge and catch a few hours of rest before heading back out for another cycle of rinse and repeat. Falling into bed Anderson checked out right away. Dredd lay there, thinking. Looking down at her asleep in his arms he felt... lucky. It didn't matter what happened out there, what monsters they faced because at the end of the day what they had would still remain. It was something to come home to at the end of a long hard battle attempting to clean up the crime ridden streets. They would have to keep it from most everyone, it wasn't expressly forbidden for Judges to be in relationships with each other but it wasn't exactly encouraged either. As long as it didn't interfere with their ability to be an effective team of Street Judges why should they deny themselves one iota of happiness?

Dredd pulled Anderson closer to him, his Rookie, his partner, his lucky charm, and a security he had not know for many years fell over him.


End file.
